The thaumaturge

As I reach for the gem, etched with the word GATE, a searing pain shoots through my head, as though my skull might crack open.

The bluish-green gem sits in my trembling hand, its dangerous aura almost palpable. I cast one last glance through the iron bars of my basement, a fleeting farewell to the cruel life I'm about to leave behind. My eyes drift to the photograph tucked into the corner of my apartment, the image of my late wife. A single tear escapes, sliding down my face—my final offering to her memory.

Before the tear even touches the floor, I step forward and place the gem into a contraption that looms before me. It's roughly the size of a car but shaped like an intricate portal frame. The moment the gem clicks into place, the machine hums to life. A shimmering gateway erupts before me a radiant, swirling hue that mirrors the gem's bluish-green light fills the location of the portal.

As I approach the gateway, an unseen force claws at me from behind, pulling me back with relentless strength. Each step forward feels like wading through quicksand, the pull intensifying with every inch I gain. The closer I get to the portal, the sharper the pain in my head—an unbearable, splitting agony that threatens to tear my mind apart.

My vision begins to blur, reality folding in on itself. Shapes distort, and colors bleed together as if the world is unraveling. I count the steps remaining with the fading clarity I have left—two more steps. Just two more.

I push forward, taking one trembling step closer. The mind-numbing pain crescendos, every nerve in my body screaming in protest. I'm so close, yet I haven't passed through. I clutch the bag of gems at my side, the strap slipping from my shoulder as my strength begins to fail.

The final step feels impossible. My legs are leaden, my body barely obeying my commands. Maybe this was never meant to be, I think as despair takes root in my mind. The thought echoes in the void of my collapsing consciousness.

And then, the darkness claims me.

After what felt like an eternity—though I couldn't say how long—I stirred. My eyes fluttered open, but a searing, blinding light forced them shut again. I groaned, shielding my face as I tried to make sense of my surroundings.

Tentatively, I reached out to feel the ground beneath me. Instead of the cold, unyielding stone of my basement, my fingers brushed against something soft and alive: grass. The sensation startled me—it had been so long since I'd felt anything like it.

Grass. I hadn't touched it in years. My world had shrunk to the confines of my basement, where the air was stale, the light dim, and the walls suffocating. I'd locked myself away down there, consumed by one desperate mission: to bring my wife back.

A month, maybe more, had passed since I descended into that dark pit. Time had lost its meaning. My diet consisted of the occasional can of spaghetti—just enough to keep me going. I'd prepared provisions for six months, but the way I stretched them out, eating sparingly and mechanically, they might have lasted me three years. Survival had become a side note. My obsession, my grief—it consumed everything else.

I groaned as I pushed myself upright, forcing my eyes open despite the sharp sting of light. The pain was piercing, but it was nothing compared to the agony I had endured while trying to pass through the gate. Blinking against the brightness, I turned my head and spotted it—my trusty pouch, resting by my side.

Relief washed over me as I grabbed it, fingers trembling as I unclasped the flap. I rummaged through its contents, ensuring nothing had been lost. Inside were 25 pure crystals, their surfaces smooth and untouched, no inscriptions marring their clarity. Alongside them were 25 more, each intricately engraved with painstaking care.

Tucked neatly into a small compartment, I found the tools I used for engraving—sharp, precise instruments that had become extensions of my hands during those endless hours in the basement. They were still there, ready for whatever lay ahead.

I stood up cleaning off the dust which had settled on my pants by now, it was evident that I had been laying here for a very long time. As I sat up I noticed nothing out of the ordinary. On the left of me was a forest and on the right a mountain range. in front of me there was a small vilage I had decided that this would be the first location which I would visit after my awakening in this world.